Daniel Balabán
On the Spool
Artist
Daniel Balabán
(1957, Šumperk), Czech
Original Title
On the Spool
Date1985
Mediumoil on canvas
Dimensions 90,5 × 110,5 cm
Classificationspaintings
Credit LineKunsthalle Praha
DescriptionSince the mid-1980s, Daniel Balabán has been a prominent painter in the Czech art scene, and particularly on Ostrava’s local scene. In his early work, Balabán combined socialist realism with sacral motifs which also feature in his later work. He also portrayed Ostrava as a stifling and depressing place, contrasting with the coded sacral themes. In the early 1990s, he began focusing on traditional Christian iconography and gradually moved toward spiritual content more generally. His paintings explore the theme of the body as well as the relationships between generations and between the worlds of men and women. A distinctive feature of his work is a fusion of painterly spontaneity with contemplative philosophical and psychological reflection. Unspokennes, signification, and treading the boundaries of decipherability are essential components of Balabán’s paintings, imbuing them with an air of mystery. Alongside traditional painting, Balabán also works with photography and digital painting.
This painting titled On the Spool (1985) dates from the early stages of Balabán’s career. The bizarre motif of a spool with two huddled figures evokes feelings of futility and existential questioning, and can be interpreted as an ironic, metaphorical commentary on the de-idealization of art during the 1980s, a period marked by a deterioration of hegemonic ideology. The expressiveness of the brushstrokes and the ironic bizarreness of the scene betray an influence of the German Neue Wilde movement. The rawness and provocative visuality of the piece can also be understood in relation to Ostrava’s industrial landscape and its society, adding an authentic dimension to Balabán’s canvas.
Raised in Ostrava, Daniel Balabán (*1957, Šumperk) studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague, in František Jiroudek’s painting studio, from 1979 to 1984. After graduating, he returned to Ostrava. At this time, when freedom of creation was relatively suppressed in Ostrava, Balabán engaged with the underground art scene. Along with a few affiliated artists and writers, he cofounded the art group Přirození, active from 1989 to 1992, which can be understood as a local reaction to the art group Tvrdohlaví (The Headstrongs), which was formative for the previous generation, but also as an attempt to bring together like-minded artists seeking a shared space to explore their creative freedom. Since 1993, Balabán has been head of the Painting Studio of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Ostrava. He is a laureate of the 2012 Michal Ranný Prize. His most recent exhibitions include Unclear Messages at the Gallery of Fine Arts in Ostrava (2016) and Personal Typography at the Václav Špála Gallery in Prague (2020).
This painting titled On the Spool (1985) dates from the early stages of Balabán’s career. The bizarre motif of a spool with two huddled figures evokes feelings of futility and existential questioning, and can be interpreted as an ironic, metaphorical commentary on the de-idealization of art during the 1980s, a period marked by a deterioration of hegemonic ideology. The expressiveness of the brushstrokes and the ironic bizarreness of the scene betray an influence of the German Neue Wilde movement. The rawness and provocative visuality of the piece can also be understood in relation to Ostrava’s industrial landscape and its society, adding an authentic dimension to Balabán’s canvas.
Raised in Ostrava, Daniel Balabán (*1957, Šumperk) studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague, in František Jiroudek’s painting studio, from 1979 to 1984. After graduating, he returned to Ostrava. At this time, when freedom of creation was relatively suppressed in Ostrava, Balabán engaged with the underground art scene. Along with a few affiliated artists and writers, he cofounded the art group Přirození, active from 1989 to 1992, which can be understood as a local reaction to the art group Tvrdohlaví (The Headstrongs), which was formative for the previous generation, but also as an attempt to bring together like-minded artists seeking a shared space to explore their creative freedom. Since 1993, Balabán has been head of the Painting Studio of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Ostrava. He is a laureate of the 2012 Michal Ranný Prize. His most recent exhibitions include Unclear Messages at the Gallery of Fine Arts in Ostrava (2016) and Personal Typography at the Václav Špála Gallery in Prague (2020).
